Interesting Christmas Facts
Some interesting facts about the Christmas season that you may or may not be aware of.
- The 25th of December was not celebrated as the birth of Christ until the year AD 440.
- The First Christmas card was designed and created back in 1843 by John Callcott Horsley.
- In 1647, Christmas was banned by Oliver Cromwell. People would be arrested if they were caught celebrating Christmas. This ban was lifted in 1660.
- Around 36 million Christmas trees are produced each year, to cope with the huge demand over the festive season.
- Christmas Pudding was initially made like a soup with wine and raisins in it.
- Bing Crosby's 'White Christmas' is not only an all time classic but is also the best-selling Christmas song of all time.
- Before the turkey, the goose was the preferred choice for the traditional Christmas dinner.
- The tradition of hanging stockings over the fireplace evolved from placing shoes around the fireplace. This was started by Dutch children.
- St. Francis of Assisi began the custom of singing Christmas carols in church in the 13th century.
- There are approximately 60 million trees grown in Europe each year.
- The letter X in Xmas is a Greek abbreviation for Christ.
- The best-selling Christmas song ever is White Christmas by Bing Crosby. It has sold more than 50 million copies around the world.
- Christmas is one of the most profitable times of year for many businesses.